Be careful this hunting season

Hunters, be safe.

Every year or so, it seems, word comes that a tree stand has given way. 

A hunter has fallen to the ground. A back has been broken. And a long, long journey of recuperation and rehabilitation has begun.

It doesn’t have to be that way.

Smart hunters know their way around their firearms — and their bows and arrows if they are archers — so there’s absolutely no reason not to translate that intelligence to tree stands during deer season.

The most recent incident came last weekend, and it’s likely that the injured party will spend much of the next several weeks going through the sort of “woulda-shoulda-coulda” second-guessing that everyone does after an accident.

So when you go out to the woods, take an extra degree of precaution.

Make sure someone knows where you are.

Make sure you have a cell phone with an adequate signal and battery life.

Make sure that the stand you are using is secure and stable.

And make sure you are wearing a harness in case something goes awry.

Hunting’s not for everyone. But everyone who enjoys it should do so safely and responsibly.

Be safe. Come back energized and fulfilled. And be prepared to hunt another day.

That’s our wish this hunting season. — J.R.